There's a substantial lack of qualified individuals in the science, technology, engineering and math fields, and the Army is looking to change that. The branch's Corps of Engineers recently began an initiative to encourage veterans, as well as children of active duty military personnel, to pursue degrees and jobs in all four industries, Military Times reports.
Veterans and military children do not have to earn master's degrees to fill jobs in the STEM fields. Experts say there are currently more job openings than there are trained professionals to fill them, and that number is expected to increase in the coming years. As the push continues to bring down unemployment among post-9/11 veterans, STEM jobs may be the path toward success.
"There are many opportunities in the STEM arena … not only for college graduates – we need a million more by 2020 – but in other STEM-related fields, where an associate's degree, or even a focus on it at some level of technical proficiency [would suffice,]" Lt. Gen. Thomas Bostick, the commander of the Corps of Engineers, told the news source.
The push comes after months of continued improvement in the unemployment rate among young veterans. According to recent data from the Department of Labor, in July the rate was at 7.7 percent – up a bit from June – but still down from this time last year.